Gov. Mitt Romney has reportedly told a gathering of supporters at a fundraiser in London that if he is elected President of the United States, he looks forward to returning a bust of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the Oval Office”:

Mitt Romney at London fundraiser: “I’m looking forward to the bust of Winston Churchill being in the Oval Office again.” #watersedge?

Great Britain graciously sent the bust to the White House as a gesture of friendship and support following the horrific September 11,2001 terror attacks on America. Then President George W. Bush proudly displayed the bust of Churchill in the Oval Office. But once Barack Obama became President, one of his first acts was to return the bust to the British.

Here is video of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations – John Bolton – on Fox News this morning where he said President Obama’s speech tonight announcing the beginning of a withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is exactly the wrong thing to do at this time.

Bolton made the point that the only reason Obama is doing it is to fulfill his pledge back in 2009 to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan in the summer of 2011. It’s not a result of advice from his military commanders and not related to conditions on the ground in Afghanistan. It is purely a political decision with an eye on the 2012 Election.

Bolton disagrees with Republicans like Jon Huntsman, who jumped into the 2012 GOP Presidential Nomination race yesterday. Huntsman believes the drawdown of troops should be faster than even what Obama is expected to announce: 5,000 troops this year and another 5,000 in the Spring of 2012. Bolton said that recent U.S. success in Afghanistan against the Taliban means the time is now to increase the pressure on them – not let up.

Here is video of White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs confirming that President Obama asked former President Jimmy Carter to stop by the Oval Office for a visit yesterday. Gibbs seemed hesitant to confirm the visit, and would not talk about what they were going to discuss. One reporter asked if the subject matter was “North Korea,” but Gibbs would not say.

The way the economy is going, perhaps Obama has been following economic advice from Jimmy Carter!

Here is a C-Span video that shows the newly decorated Oval Office during the first 40 seconds of the video. It then goes to an interview done with Obama in the Oval Office back on August 12 – BEFORE it was redecorated. Obama is asked what life is like in the White House, and then he is asked (1:36 of the video) “what did you change” in the Oval Office. Obama responded:

“Well, the truth of the matter is, we have not yet redecorated this room. The tradition is that every President comes in, and they rework it, but given that we are in the midst of very difficult economic times, we decided to hold off last year in terms of making some changes . . . . . “

Obama said nothing about the fact the Oval Office was going to be redecorated within a couple of weeks of the interview. I wonder why?

It seems some are suggesting President Obama’s new Oval Office rug not only got a historical quote wrong as to its source, but that it also has the Presidential Seal wrong.

Ed Morrissey at HotAir has done a fantastic job of getting to the bottom of that question. He concludes that because the Seal on a carpet is not supposed to be an exact representation of the actual Seal, there is nothing wrong with the Seal on the new carpet.

HotAir: So no, Obama and his team didn’t use the wrong seal for the carpet, or get the seal wrong at all in any official sense. Some may not like the non-traditional representation of the seal in the new carpet, but it’s at least slightly more traditional than Bush 41 . . . . . Read More

When President Obama addresses the nation on Iraq on Tuesday night, he will do so from newly redecorated digs. The look, which includes new and reupholstered furniture and new paint and wallpaper, is more modern and tends toward neutral hues of brown and taupe, rather than the gold and yellow tones favored by his predecessor, George W. Bush.

Gone is the sunburst rug that Mr. Bush loved so much; designed by his wife, Laura, he used to say it evoked a spirit of optimism. In its place is a more muted, mostly wheat and cream-colored carpet featuring the presidential seal in the center, and ringed on its edge with five quotations selected by Mr. Obama – four from former presidents (Lincoln, Kennedy and both Roosevelts) and one from the Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. . . .

The makeover was not done at taxpayer expense; the White House said the costs were covered by the White House Historical Association, a nonprofit group, through a contribution from the committee that paid for Mr. Obama’s inauguration. The White House is not saying how much the redesign cost, except to say that it was ‘’in line with’’ what Mr. Obama’s two most recent predecessors spent. The rug was made and donated by the Scott Group, a carpet maker headquartered in Grand Rapids, Mich., that had made the rug designed for President Bill Clinton, the White House said.

But given the hard economic times facing the nation, Mr. Obama is bound to face questions about the redo. . . . . .

These are the quotations the president chose for his rug:

* “The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself” – President Franklin D. Roosevelt

* “The Arc of the Moral Universe Is Long, But It Bends Towards Justice” – Martin Luther King Jr.

* “Government of the People, By the People, For the People” – President Abraham Lincoln

Here is video of Karl Rove reacting to President Obama’s Oval Office Address last night. Rove said you could sum up Obama’s speech and strategy as, “don’t let a crisis go to waste.” Obama is seeking to use the Gulf Oil Spill as an excuse to “pivot” to his radical Global-Warming hysteria-driven Cap and Trade policy.

Rove said, “These are two different things.” Stopping the Oil Leak and cleaning up the mess in “not connected” to Cap and Trade legislation. Rove does not believe it is likely to pass in Congress because it will mean massive loss of manufacturing jobs and much higher energy prices across the board.

Here is video of Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer describing in detail her meeting yesterday with President Obama at the White House.

Brewer said when she arrived, Obama greeted her in the hall and then invited her into the Oval Office. They sat down, and other aides also sat on the couches around them. She said they exchanged pleasantries, and then Obama told her that he disagreed with her on “1070” – the Arizona anti-illegal Immigration law. But, he told her he would not comment on it, and Brewer said she told Obama that “there is a lot of misunderstanding about the bill,” and the “she made sure it mirrored Federal Law” and would not allow “racial profiling.” Gov. Brewer indicated that Obama just sat and listened to her position but did not comment further on the law.

They then discussed “securing the border,” which Brewer said Obama pledged to do. But Brewer apparently put Obama on the spot by asking him, “When?” She wanted to know when he intended to actually commit the resources to secure the border. Obama said he would send people to Arizona within two weeks to talk to her further about that.

Greta said, “Let me get this straight. Here we have the two principals involved – the President of the United States and the Governor of the State sitting across from each other in the Oval Office – and the President says we’re going to send the staff to do all the talking to your staff instead of the two of you talking together.”

Brewer responded, “That’s correct” – as she flashed that smile of hers.

The Governor told Greta that Obama made it very clear that he wants “Comprehensive Immigration Reform,” and Brewer said she made it clear that the border had to be secured before there could be any discussion of Immigration Reform.

Brewer said she believes Obama is going to push for “Comprehensive Immigration Reform.” She is expecting to hear from Obama within two weeks what he intends to do about the border, whether he is going to build a fence, how many troops he is sending to Arizona, and how much money he is going to commit.

I wouldn’t hold my breath on actually hearing from Obama within two weeks. But Brewer does a fantastic job of communicating her message in clear and understandable terms. Hopefully, she will keep his feet to the fire.